Saturday, 1 April 2017

3 Ways to Feel Happier | The Self Love Club

I made a promise to myself at the start of this year and it
was to love myself a little bit more. I am joining the self-love club.

It is easy to lose a bit of yourself when you’re a mum, your
YOU-ness if you like. Of course you gain this awesome nurturing caring
strong person but you can forget the carefree happy selfish side.
Parenting is all-consuming at times and it really shouldn’t be, it should be ok
to have some “me time” and to give yourself a break. You are more than
just a mum. I am way more than just a mum.

Self love is about sitting back an analyzing what went well
for you today. What made you smile? Did you eat like you should,
did you drink enough water!?

It is also about discovering what truly makes you happy. It is so easy to believe that material things can make you happy but often the feelings we have for physical things are short lived, however much you are in love with your new Adidas Gazelles!!Sometimes its easy to fall into a trap when browsing through Instagram of thinking you need all the stuff that everyone else is buying, because they look happy. Valencia filter, remember?!

The Love.Yourself.Lean wellness journal was created by the lovely Kelly Terranova, after hitting what she likes to call her "rock bottom", where she was deeply unhappy and had little self worth (more on Kelly's story here).She believes that the journey to being totally healthy is way more than just eating clean and exercising, it is about being happy. Her journal can help to guide you to be the happiest healthiest version of you.With that in mind I am embarking on a little bit of a journey using Kelly's Love.Yourself.Lean wellness journal. I'm going to fill in the pages everyday, documenting what went well, what I ate and what I want to focus on for my own happiness whether its my family, health, mental wellness or something else. I am also going to colour and decorate the pages with pretty doodles because that makes me super happy too!!

My happy most certainly won't be the same as your happy but there are definitely things we can all do every day to make us feel a little brighter and ultimately more smiley.Write a list of good thingsThis is one of my favourite things to do when I'm feeling anxious or down in the dumps. I like to write a list of every single good thing in my life, so things like I have a beautiful healthy family, a roof over my head, the sun came out or I had a success at work. Writing those small things down and reading them back to myself when I have had a bad day makes me realise things aren't all that bad and i feel really grateful again for everything I have in my life.

Set a goal for the dayTry to set yourself a end goal for the day. It doesn't have to be anything massive or life changing. It could be that you clear out your old clothes, or give to charity or simply call a friend to have that long overdue chat. You will be surprised about how good you feel after just achieving one small success.Have an hour to yourselfIt is so important to have some "me" time, especially if you have a lot on your plate, kids to look after or a hectic career. Set aside an hour every week to do something that you love. It could be as simple as taking a bath, going for a walk or it could be going to a dance class or even shopping. You will be amazed at how refreshed you feel after just taking an hour out of your busy schedule to revel in some self indulgence.

I can't wait to update you all in a few months time to let you know how I am getting on with my Love.Yourself.Lean journey! You can pick up a LYL wellness journal here, and Kelly has kindly given you guys a 10% off code (just type lovelucie at the checkout)What makes you happy??